Persephone
by Ime Aubrey
Summary: This was the decree of the gods and to her it seemed the most natural thing in the world. / Post-Canon / AU


_The characters in this fan fic are all property of their original creators and owners and not mine in any way, nor did I profit from this in any way._

_This is a product of insomnia, my inner geek and too much imagination...don't say I didn't warn you. Oh and I__ realize that a teenager wouldn't be able to legally step foot inside a casino. But this is fan fiction, and not real life, so I figured a little bending of the rules was okay. _

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><p><strong>Persephone<strong>

© Ime Aubrey

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><p>"Anzu!"<p>

She turned toward the voice and saw Mai shouldering through the airport crowd, waving madly.

"Mai," Anzu called. She hurried to meet the leggy, blonde duelist. Mai flung her arms around Anzu, nearly knocking her off balance.

"Oof!" Anzu gasped. "It's good to see you too Mai."

"How are you? I haven't seen you forever."

Anzu giggled. "It hasn't been that long."

"Well, you look great, hon."

"I feel great," Anzu said, smiling to herself. It was true, she did feel great. She had caught up on her sleep on the flight and felt alert, aware and ready to face her friends. Physically, her body ached pleasantly, and when she thought about the reason why, it made her tingle all over.

Mai was watching her closely. Putting a deliberate edge on her words, Mai asked, "How's Atem?"

Anzu blushed. "Um, fine."

"He's just 'fine'?" Mai pressed.

"Hey come on, what is this, confession time?"

"If you have something to confess, then yes. Come on, what are female friends for? Give, 'Zoo. Spit it out."

"Mai, what do you want me to say?"

Mai tossed her long, golden hair over her shoulders. "Oh I don't know," she said as they strolled toward baggage claim. "You could start by telling me how long you've been lovers."

"What makes you think –"

"Really hon, I may not be as close to you as Shizuka or those boys of yours, but I know you well enough. I'd guess it was pretty recent, right?"

"Last night," Anzu admitted.

Mai's lovely violet eyes widened. "Last night was your first time?"

Anzu nodded shyly.

"Oh my God," Mai cried, drawing curious looks from around the terminal. "I want to hear everything!"

"Mai, we're not in Duelist Kingdom anymore. This isn't like the time you set me and Yuugi up."

"No, this is better! Is that your suitcase?"

"Yeah; here, I've got it. What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you had to work?"

"Nope, I got one of the other dealers to cover my shift for me, so here I am. Everyone else is flying in tomorrow. You're crashing at my place, while the guys and Yuugi's grandfather are staying at the Red Dune, a little place across from the Luxor."

"Trying to make me feel at home, Mai?"

"It wasn't intentional, hon, more of a convenience. I figured you'd want a break from all those fragile male egos, so I booked them close to my place, but not _too_ close. My apartment's one bedroom though, so we get to be bunk mates, just like at Duelist Kingdom. So you can tell me everything. I want _details_."

"You don't think the whole situation…is well, weird?"

Mai shrugged. "I was skeptical at first, but then I remembered how you two used to look at each other when he was here among us mortals. I have to admit, he is pretty hot, for a three thousand year old pharaoh. So, do your parents suspect anything?"

Anzu shook her head. "As far as they know, I am studying dance at Madame Malaika's School for the Arts in Cairo and staying with the Ishtars."

They stepped out into the dry desert heat and headed toward Mai's car.

By day, Las Vegas was dust-colored and tacky. Everything looked plastic and cheap, even the multi-million dollar casinos. Masses gathered outside of places advertising bargain buffets or gourmet seafood for less than ten dollars. There were hardly any children despite the recent movement toward making Vegas more family oriented. Retired folks with deep tans, pudgy white-kneed men wearing baggy shirts, and a kaleidoscope of others, and all of them wore shades to protect against the blinding Nevada sun.

Mai was bubbling with questions and excitement as she drove down the strip. "I think it's great," she said. "Too bad he couldn't come with you."

Looking up at the spires of Excalibur, Anzu said, "If there's any place where he'd feel at home, it would be here. But this isn't about Atem, Mai. This is about spending time with my friends. What's the plan, anyway? When's the Expo?"

"It's this weekend. But I am planning other things for us to do. And there will be plenty of time for you guys to take in the sights. Win some spending money and maybe even catch a few shows."

Mai drove past the Luxor, a massive black pyramid, which was the only building that looked correct against the desert background. In front of it was an imitation of the Sphinx, flanked by statues and rows of palm trees. The Egyptian effect was slightly ruined by the monorail connecting the pyramid to the castle next door and acres of parking lots.

"The light on top is one of the brightest in the world," Mai pointed out. "It can be seen from space. And the statue there, the jackal is –"

"Anubis," Anzu finished. "The Egyptian Lord of the Dead; I know. We've met."

"Right, I almost forgot. The incident in Kaiba's Duel Dome." She pulled up outside her residence, a modest, but decent apartment just off the strip. They got out and unloaded Anzu's suitcase. After freshening themselves up, they decided to hit the strip.

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><p>Time in Sin City did not obey the laws of physics. Not in the casinos anyway. There was no way to tell how late it was. It was deliberate, just like the layout of the buildings. For who could pass through such a place without giving in to the temptation to plunk at least one round on the slots? Or have a go at the black jack tables? Very few and that was where Vegas made its money. The lights and bells were lures, fishing for dollars.<p>

Mai dragged Anzu from one glitzy hotel to the next, giving her a jump start on sightseeing. Anzu herself was unable to resist the urge. She had never been to Vegas before and was fascinated. She followed Mai and she enjoyed herself, but all the while she wished Atem where here to see this. What would he think?

She jingled the gold-rimmed dollar coins in her pocket. The centers were glossy black, each with a different image in the center from Egyptian Mythology. Not quite free souvenirs, but easier for her to handle and get on the plane to Domino City, and later, Cairo.

A pair of obvious newlyweds went by, arms around each other, their happiness so visible it might have been written on their foreheads in neon. Anzu smiled wistfully. That would never be her. She had made her choice and didn't regret a thing, except that she would never be able to show the world how much in love she was. She would have to keep the greatest thing in her life a secret.

"So do you want to go that Siegfried and Roy show tonight?"

Anzu shook her head. "There's been a lot of magic in my life lately, and then some. I think I'd rather just call it night."

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><p>"So," Mai said, flopping across her bed and propping her chin in her hands. "It's time to tell all."<p>

Anzu unwound the towel from her damp hair. "There isn't that much to tell Mai…"

"Bull!"

Anzu went to the window and looked out at the light show going on in front of the Luxor. She closed her eyes and felt herself yearning back toward Egypt and the Afterlife. Her body still ached sweetly in remembrance. _Completion,_ she thought. What had begun years ago was now complete.

"Completion," she murmured. "It was completion." She then chuckled. "I am sorry Mai. Maybe if you were in my shoes you'd understand."

How could she describe what had happened? How could she explain following Atem into the realm of the dead and the consequences it heralded? How could she adequately say what it was like to be both of the living and the dead? How could she explain her pulse beating here and now, and ceasing when she crossed the gateway between worlds? She was revered as a queen of Kemet yet she was still an adolescent girl with a life and everyday problems. Mai had no frame of reference. Mai wouldn't understand what it was like to walk between worlds. She had become a modern day version of Persephone, in order to negate the pain of separation from her loved ones. Half of every year in the realm of the living to spend with her friends and family, the other half spent in the Lands of Aaru with her husband, as his queen. This was the decree of the gods and to her it seemed the most natural thing in the world.

Mai shrugged. "Persephone was never my cup of tea. I'm more of an Aphrodite girl. You're happy 'Zoo. That's all that matters." She crawled into bed. "Can you get the lights?"

"Sure." Anzu cast the room in darkness and crawled beneath the covers next to Mai. She touched the silver cartouche around her neck. A twin to the one she had given Atem just before he entered the Memory World. She ran her fingers over the markings.

Somewhere far away, in the Lands of Aaru, was he thinking of her and remembering? Remembering how they had spent the entire night exploring each other, until it was time for her to leave? Remembering their farewell kiss just before she had walked through the veil that separated the worlds?

She suspected he was.

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><p>FIN.<p> 


End file.
